ADN6.23

ADN

Written by

Tom McCarthy

Slow Pony

6/23/21

EXT. US EMBASSY, CARACAS - DAY Barricades and a few GUARDS. The foot traffic is light but the security is serious. A BUREAUCRAT (38) exits the gate. He looks NERVOUS. He checks over his shoulder, walks on. INT. CREMA PARAISO - LATER The Bureaucrat enters, anxiously scans the room, spotting a WOMAN already seated in the corner, facing the door. This is EILEEN FITZGERLD, 44. She’s attractive but it’s her energy that leads. She’s no bullshit with a confident charm. She’s accessible but hard to pin down. She’s who she needs to be in any given moment which right now is calm and warm. EILEEN Hi Steve. Good to see you. STEVE (Sitting)

Sorry, I’m late. I’ve only been here a few months. Kinda buried. EILEEN I appreciate you making the time. Hope I wasn’t pestering you too much, I just wanted to make sure we got the chance to sit down face to face while I was here. STEVE Oh yeah. Me too. (Eileen waits) I know the confirmation hearing is coming up... EILEEN Six days. I publish in four. STEVE Right. Look I’m only doing this because I believe no one should be above the law. Even the good guys. And I do think the General’s one of the good guys. Serving under him was the highlight of my career. EILEEN Of course.

2.

STEVE But I know a reporter with your reputation wouldn’t be on this if it wasn’t important. EILEEN It is important. Steve nods, exhales, trying to muster his resolve. STEVE This is gonna derail the General’s confirmation, isn’t it? EILEEN Maybe. But considering he’s the President’s choice for Defense Secretary I think the American people have a right to know. Steve nods, slipping deeper into self-doubt and regret. EILEEN (CONT'D) Steve, did you bring the documents? (Off Steve’s blank look) The thumb drive? Do you have it? Steve looks at her, MOMENT OF TRUTH. Then... STEVE Ah shoot. I totally spaced. I’m sorry. It’s back at the embassy. EILEEN (Pleasant) No problem. I’ll walk you back. STEVE (No way in hell) Oh, no. That’s OK. Really. I’ll just grab it and... EILEEN Blow me off. Steve freezes, cover blown. Eileen leans in. EILEEN (CONT'D) Look, I get it Steve, this is scary

and it’s much easier to just do nothing. However doing nothing is no longer an option.

(MORE)

3.

EILEEN (CONT'D)

This story’s written and I came to Caracas because of your access to the General and the truth. (she sits back)

One of the perks in working for The Vanguard is they will pay for my fancy hotel for as long as I need. So we can drag this out while you work up your nerve or you can give me that thumb drive in your pocket and you get on with your life. Steve simply reaches into his pocket and places a THUMBDRIVE on the table. Yeah, Eileen’s good. And scary as shit. EILEEN (CONT'D) You did the right thing, Steve.

Thank you. And for what it’s worth, I have a good feeling the American people are going to thank you too. END OF TEASER

INT. KITCHEN, THE VANGAURD, NYC - AFTERNOON Eileen is working a FANCY ESPRESSO MACHINE in a very MODERN KITCHEN. She’s got her EARBUD in, mid conversation. EILEEN (INTO PHONE) Uh huh. Read that back to me. She dumps a HEAP of sugar into her Americano and stirs as she exits into the newsroom. Floor to ceiling windows reveal Manhattan in all directions from the eighteenth floor of this classic flat iron building. This is a moneyed, modern American newsroom with all trappings. OZ for journo’s. EILEEN (INTO PHONE)(CONT'D) She passes a MASSIVE 70” flatscreen TRACKING READERSHIP. Below that, a BANK OF SMALLER TV’S playing various news outlets. Eileen peels off down a row of desks, each equipped with large flat screens as a DIVERSE STAFF (30’s-40’s) are buried in their screens and working the phones. Eileen plops down at her cluttered desk, reads her piece with a feverish intensity. WOMAN (O.S.) Hey Eileen. You gotta a minute? No. Keep the second graf where it is. Drop that line in at the end. And I’m good with the art.

4.

A YOUNG WOMAN, 28, Black, Ivy education hovers. EILEEN (Without looking up) On deadline. YOUNG JOURNALIST It’s about your story. It’s important. EILEEN Who are you? YOUNG JOURNALIST

I’m Shailey Granger from research. And not to overstep but I really think you should consider providing a bit more of the General’s background for context. EILEEN Context about what? SHAILEY (Gaining confidence) A troubled childhood. First Black cadet to finish top of his class. He overcame a lot, broke a lot of barriers. That might be relevant. EILEEN It’s compelling, not relevant and I’m thirty-five minutes from publishing a story that I’ve spent

four months investigating and although I appreciate your ‘all hands on deck’ approach here... well, come to think of it, I guess I don’t appreciate it. And, more importantly, I really don’t agree with it. Thank you. She turns back to her screen. Shailey beats a hasty retreat. Tough love in the big leagues. INT. EDITOR’S OFFICE - SUNDOWN Eileen’s story is topping the charts on the 70” screen tracking readership. She’s clocking it from the office of RICHARD METHA, (60’s, Indian, measured) at his desk.

5.

RICHARD The story’s getting read. 15,000 uniques every ten minutes. And we already have TV asks from Morning Joe, Today Show, GMA. EILEEN Anything from the General? RICHARD Nothing yet. EILEEN Well, I have a date with a bottle of wine and my couch. RICHARD Eileen. This is very good work. With a half smile, Eileen exits the office. Job. Well. Done. INT. EILEEN’S APARTMENT - LATER Bad TV plays. Eileen is sprawled on the couch. A GLASS OF WINE on the coffee table, next to the remnants of TAKEOUT. Her phone rings. She checks it, hits speaker. EILEEN How we doing? RICHARD(ON SPEAKER) The General’s team is going after your source. EILEEN Shocker. Who’d he hire? RICHARD Baxter. Crisis Management. EILEEN Big time. He’s nervous. Twitter? RICHARD It’s scattered. A bit from the right and the left. EILEEN The left? RICHARD The General’s a Dem. Don’t engage.

6.

EILEEN Deep in some quality broadcasting. RICHARD Good. Stay off your phone. Night.

Richard hangs up. Eileen’s wheels are spinning. “The Left.” She PICKS UP HER PHONE, she can’t help herself. She starts scrolling, reads. EILEEN “Liberals must stop eating their own. The General is one of us.” (Shaking her head) Yeah, if by “us” you mean a crook. She’s getting sucked in. She sits up, more scrolling. EILEEN (CONT'D) (To the Tweet) Because you didn’t read the whole article, you putz. If you did... She starts typing, replying to the Tweet. She’s in. INT. EILEEN’S BEDROOM - EARLY MORNING It’s RAINING outside. 4:30am on the clock. Eileen’s asleep when her phone rings. She wakes, grabs it. EILEEN

I still have ten minutes. Morning Joe’s first up and it’s at six. RICHARD

We canceled it. We’re getting blow back on the piece. Social media is leaning hard into the race aspect. EILEEN What race aspect? RICHARD You were on Twitter last night. EILEEN A bit. Let me defend my story. RICHARD Come on in and we’ll discuss. Click. Eileen sits up, confused and pissed.

7.

INT. THE VANGAURD, RICHARD’S OFFICE - EVENING End of a long day. Eileen sits in a large CONFERENCE ROOM with Richard, two other EDITORS, A SENIOR PR and a HEAD OF LEGAL. The tension in the room is thick. Eileen is on edge. RICHARD Anything from your source? EILEEN He’s gone dark. Disappeared. Embassy said he took personal time. HEAD OF LEGAL

Did you know the General had an affair with your source’s ex-wife? EILEEN Obviously not. But I do wanna see proof of that affair. They’re trying to discredit my source. RICHARD Either way, the documents your source supplied are a real concern. They claim they’re photoshopped. EILEEN He’s a bad guy. We know it. RICHARD Maybe but if those documents are forged, it’s an issue. They’re framing it as a hit piece with racial motives. SENIOR PR (Looking at a print out) These tweets are all you, correct? EILEEN Yeah, and I stand by them. Come on, Richard, this is all smoke. The fact remains, the General used his power and connections to help bad people sell arms and innocent people died as a result! RICHARD There’s another element at play, Eileen. Connected to race. (Off Eileen’s look) Complaints have surfaced. About how you’ve treated the staff.

(MORE)

8.

RICHARD (CONT'D)

Especially women. Specifically women of color. EILEEN What?! SENIOR PR Including one yesterday. EILEEN Who? Shailey? From research? SENIOR PR She’s head of research. EILEEN And she overstepped! I’m not gonna pull punches because she’s a woman or because she’s black. That’s how you learn. That’s how I learned! RICHARD Regardless. The narrative is gaining traction. EILEEN Where? SENIOR PR It started with the Daily Beast. Now the Times, Washington Post, and Fox News have picked it up.

That lands with a thud. Eileen’s taking water from all sides. She scans the room. The faces of her colleagues are ashen. She’s the story now. She simply gets up and walks out. LAWRENCE O’DONNELL (V.O.) Eileen Fitzgerald is a highly respected journalist. She has had an outstanding career. Colleagues try not to stare as she passes. Dead woman walking. She grabs her coat and bag, keeps moving. LAWRENCE O’DONNELL (V.O) But this story is, undeniably, a stain on her reputation. She walks past the BANK OF TV SCREENS. Only Lawrence is audible. She arrives at the elevator, and presses the button.

9.

LAWRENCE O’DONNELL (ON TV)(CONT'D)

As for the charges of racism, bullying and misogyny. This is not the Ms. Fitzgerald I know. She gets on the elevator and turns to face us. LAWRENCE O’DONNELL(CONT'D) But we live in a time when these charges must be taken seriously and dealt with by Ms. Fitzgerald and her employer, the Vanguard. And with that, the elevator door and this chapter of Eileen Fitzgerald’s life, closes. EXT. STREET, ISLAMORADO, FLORIDA KEYS - DAY A painfully bright day in a place far, far away. Eileen is walking along a busy two lane highway, as cars speed past. She’s dressed in jeans and an old t-shirt, wearing dark sunglasses and carrying a PLASTIC BAG OF GROCERIES. EXT. STREET, ISLAMORADO, THE FLORIDA KEYS - LATER Eileen walks down a quiet side street, the closer we get the worse she looks. She’s obviously been through the ringer. She approaches a line of identical WHITE CONDOS. Simple but nice, each with their own prefab white picket fence. She spots a MAN (60’s) with a rumpled academic look, sitting on the steps of one condo, buried in his phone. Eileen pauses for a minute, then pushes the gate open letting the door slam behind her. The Man looks up from his phone. MAN (Smiling) Hi Fitzgerald. EILEEN (Flatly) Stanley. STANLEY Your hair’s shorter. EILEEN You haven’t seen me in twelve years. Why are you here?

10.

STANLEY You wouldn’t return my calls so I thought I’d pop by. EILEEN ‘Pop by’. From Alaska. Stanley shrugs, a wry smile on his face. Something’s up. INT. EILEEN’S CONDO - LATER Eileen leads Stanley inside. She’s tense. Stanley glances around the place, it’s simply furnished and a bit of mess. STANLEY Airbnb? EILEEN Bought it years ago. She sets her bag down next to a row of empty WINE BOTTLES. STANLEY I never thought of you as a fun in the sun kind of gal. EILEEN Well now you know. There’s a real edge to Eileen. She’s changed, flat. The spark is gone. Stanley notices some PAPERS on the table. STANLEY You working on something? Eileen ignores him, busies herself with the groceries. STANLEY (CONT'D) Your side of the story? (Off her look. What else?) I’d like to hear it. EILEEN You can buy the book. STANLEY They should’ve had your back. EILEEN

Yeah, well they saw the Twitter mob coming and they ran the other way.

11.

STANLEY Your source was bad but so was the General. You were right. EILEEN And you flew 3,000 miles to commiserate with me. A little refresher, Stanley, you hung me out to dry too. Twelve years ago. The Cleveland Plain Dealer. Remember? STANLEY Yeah. I do. I screwed up. EILEEN You did! But here you stand. To that end, out with it, Stanley. Why are you here? STANLEY I’m here to offer you a job. EILEEN EILEEN (CONT'D) I’m not that desperate, Stanley. STANLEY You’re living in the Florida Keys! EILEEN At least it’s warm. STANLEY You don’t care about warm! You care about what’s right and wrong. EILEEN I don’t! I don’t give a crap about right and wrong anymore! I’m out! STANLY You can’t be out. You’re too good! EILEEN (Angry) I’m too good?! Really? Didn’t you read the news, Stanley? Hashtag, my time’s up. I’m a hack, a Karen, a racist, a misogynist, an elitist, and every other ‘ist’ you can name.

STANLEY (CONT'D) One year contract. General Assignment. No strings.

(Shaking her head) Jesus...

(MORE)

12.

EILEEN (CONT'D)

I spent my whole career trying to root out injustice only to find out I’m not part of the solution, I’m part of the PROBLEM! So yeah, I’m out. I’m out, I’m out. I’m OUT! Eileen sweeps the empty wine bottles off the counter. CRASH! Stanley is stunned. Eileen can’t make eye contact. EILEEN (CONT'D) Stanley can see she means it and it’s fucking heartbreaking. He crosses to the door and after one last look, he’s gone. Eileen is left alone, deeply shaken. Whatever scab had formed was just ripped open. She goes to the counter, pours herself a big glass of wine. Her default. Her life boat. DING DONG. Shit. She crosses the door, slowly opens it. STANLEY Thank you for the offer, Stanley. My answer is no. Please leave.

Can you at least point me to a crappy bar with a good burger?

Off Eileen’s face. A glimmer... At least Stanley didn’t run for the hills, like everyone else in her life. Ice broken.

INT. PUB - LATER Stanley has a coke. Eileen has a glass of wine. STANLEY We just had our second kid when the Daily News reached out. Going home to Alaska felt right. (Then) You sure you don’t want to eat something? EILEEN No. I’m fine. STANLEY Are you? Stanley holds her gaze, deeply sincere. Eileen squirms. STANLEY (CONT'D) Are you talking to anyone?

13.

EILEEN I’m talking to you. Or at least I’m trying to so can you stop. Stanley shrugs, sits back, knows not to push. EILEEN (CONT'D) So you’re the big boss now. Is it all you hoped for? STANLEY

Yeah. It is. One catch: Alaska’s a fat mess. Crime and corruption are spiking. One in three towns don’t have a police department. Public institutions are failing and oil money is drying up so it’s only going to get worse. EILEEN Sounds like heaven for a newspaper. STANLEY You’d think. But my staff has been cut from about a hundred and fifty to thirty and we’re covering a state that’s two and half times the size of Texas. It’s embarrassing what we’re missing. It’s shameful. EILEEN You’re a local newspaper in America. It’s a divine miracle that you’re still open. STANLEY And what happens when we’re not? Considering how bad things are now, I can’t even imagine Alaska with no oversight. No one asking the hard questions. Sounding the alarm. EILEEN You gotta plan B? STANLEY Had one. She just turned me down. EILEEN I’m one reporter. I couldn’t fix your problem. You know that.

14.

STANLEY I also know I could never lure a big foot like you to Alaska if... EILEEN If I wasn’t radioactive...

Stanley nods, pretty much. Then he pulls a PHOTO from his briefcase, places it on the table. It’s of a NATIVE ALASKAN WOMAN (18, sweet face.) STANLEY Gloria Nagiac. Lived in a village, on the North Slope. She went

missing after a party. Three months later, two hunters found her body in the woods outside her village. EILEEN (Picking up the photo) Homicide? STANLEY The police ruled out foul play. They say suicide or accident. Her mother disagrees. EILEEN Most parents do. Look, that’s horrible. But it’s a story about a dead woman in Alaska. I’ve never even been to Alaska. Why me? STANLEY

It’s not just a story about a dead woman in Alaska. She’s indigenous. He sets a LARGE STACK of PHOTOS down. Maybe FORTY in all. STANLEY (CONT'D) So are they. It’s a story about how Indigenous women in Alaska keep ending up missing or murdered and no one cares enough to find out why. We need to make them care. Eileen leafs through the stack. ALL INDIGENOUS WOMEN. ALL MISSING OR MURDERED. It’s ABSOLUTELY HAUNTING. STANLEY (CONT'D)

It’s a big story. One of a handful that I want to get before they turn out the lights. That’s ‘why you’, Eileen.

(MORE)

15.

STANLEY (CONT'D)

I’m here because I know who you are. I know that you’ve been

through hell. But you still live and breathe to shine the light on what is wrong in this world. And what’s happening in Alaska right now is very, very wrong. She looks at Stanley and then back at the photos.

INT. AIRPORT - DAY The GATE SIGN reads ANCHORAGE. Standing below the sign is an impatient TICKETING AGENT. EILEEN (O.S.) Stanley. It’s me. I’m standing at the gate and I’m leaving you this message so you have record of it. Eileen is standing at the empty gate ignoring the Agent. EILEEN (CONT'D)

TICKETING AGENT Ma’am. We have to board. Ma’am please. I’m going to close the gate.

What happened in Cleveland cannot happen again. I need to know that you have my back regardless of how it goes down. No excuses. And I report only to you. No one else.

INT. AIRPLANE - DAY Eileen is finishing a GLASS OF WINE in business class. The plane taxi’s as a STEWARDESS reminds passengers to fasten their seatbelts. She takes Eileen’s glass. She seems agitated. She sits back, looks out the window. She adjusts her seatbelt, turns on the air above her head. She turns to the BUSINESS MAN in the seat next to her. EILEEN Is it stuffy in here? The Business Man just shrugs ‘no’. Something is definitely off. Eileen is having trouble breathing. She adjusts her seatbelt again and then presses her HELP BUTTON. The plane is accelerating down the runway reaching max speed. She’s desperate now. She jabs her Help button repeatedly before finally, undoing her seatbelt, she squeezes by her shocked Neighbor.

16.

EILEEN (CONT'D) I’m sorry. I’m having... I’m having some trouble breathing. STEWARDESS (OVER THE PA) Please remain seated. We are about to take off.

But Eileen isn’t listening. She’s lurching down the aisle using the seat backs to steady herself. She looks crazy. STEWARDESS (CONT'D) M’am. Please return to your seat. EILEEN

STEWARDESS (CONT'D) There’s no problem with the oxygen!

I can’t. I can’t breathe. I think there’s a problem with the oxygen levels or...

The plane begins lifting off the ground. EILEEN (CONT'D) I’m telling you I can’t... THUD! Eileen goes down without warning, out cold. Another PASSENGER screams.

END OF ACT 1

ACT TWO

INT. AIRPLANE - LATER Eileen’s eyes flutter open. She’s horizontal across three seats in the first row of COACH. She sits up, alarmed. WOMAN (O.S.) You’re OK. Eileen turns to an ALASKA NATIVE WOMAN seated next to her. EILEEN What happened? WOMAN

You fainted. You’ve been sleeping for an hour. Your vitals are good but you should drink lots of water. And your old seat is still open. EILEEN Are you a doctor?

17.

WOMAN No. I’m a village health aid. Which is like an EMT. My name is Melinda. EILEEN Eileen. MELINDA Has that happened before? EILEEN No. Never. I felt like I was having a heart attack. MELINDA I’m pretty sure it wasn’t that. EILEEN What’s your guess? MELINDA It’s just a guess but it might have been a panic attack. (Eileen reacts) Have you been under a lot stress? EILEEN No. And I don’t have panic attacks. MELINDA There’s always a first. You should see someone when you land. Melinda jots something down on her napkin. MELINDA (CONT'D)

My number. I live in a village outside Anchorage. If it happens again or you need help finding someone to see, you can call me.

Eileen takes it.

MELINDA (CONT'D) Your body is trying to tell you something, Eileen. You should listen.

INT. PLANE - LATER C/U: GOOGLE SEARCH: “WHAT CAUSES A PANIC ATTACK?”

18.

Eileen is back in business class, on her computer. She pulls her screen close, ensuring no one sees, starts to read. The fasten seatbelt light chimes. She looks out her window and there it is, ANCHORAGE tucked along Cook Inlet with the towering Chugach mountains on the horizon. It’s stunning. INT. AIRPORT - LATER Eileen exits baggage claim dragging two suitcases. She spots GABRIEL (22, Mexican) standing front and center with a big sign that reads; EILEEN FITZGERALD ADN. He waves excitedly. GABRIEL Hi Ms. Fitzgerald. Welcome to Alaska. Can I help with your bags? He awkwardly grabs her bags. He’s very nervous. EILEEN Hi. Uh...Thanks. GABRIEL How was your flight? Any problems? EILEEN (Lying) No. No problems. Melinda passes. She nods, smiles. Timing is a funny thing. GABRIEL OK. Great. Let’s go. And just like that Gabriel is gone. Eileen frowns, follows. INT. CAR - LATER Eileen is in the passenger seat of Gabriel’s 2012 HONDA, staring off into the distance. Gabriel keeps stealing glances at her. Eileen is trying to ignore him but finally relents. EILEEN Do you work for the paper? GABRIEL Intern. But I want to one day. It’s my dream. To be a journalist. EILEEN I didn’t think people dreamt about being a journalist anymore.

19.

GABRIEL I do. And I just have to say, I’m a huge fan of you and your work. It’s

truly inspirational to meet you and... drive you. Regardless of what happened, you know with your last story. Eileen can only nod and take it on the chin... this kid. EXT. SPENARD, EILEEN’S LODGINGS - LATER Eileen slams the door in a quiet neighborhood. It’s a quirky mix of small houses and trailer parks. It’s got an edge. They are in the driveway of an A-frame house with a porch. Gabriel leads her to the front door. GABRIEL It’s nice, right? Trust me, this Airbnb was by far the best for the price. I stocked your fridge. Just the basics. Am I talking too much? EILEEN Right on the edge. GABRIEL Copy. Here are the keys and a sleep mask. He holds out the MASK and KEYS. Eileen only takes the keys. EILEEN Thanks but I don’t use a mask. GABRIEL won’t set until about eleven thirty. You should take it. He keeps holding it out. Eileen finally snatches it. GABRIEL (CONT'D) Shall I show you around inside? EILEEN No. Good night Gabriel. GABRIEL See you in the morning. Can’t wait! First timers from the lower 48 have trouble with the daylight. The sun

20.

INT. STANLEY’S HOME, BEDROOM - LATER Lights out. TWO LUMPS under the covers. A CELL PHONE rings. Stanley wakes, his WIFE stirs. He checks his phone, answers. STANLEY Just like old times. EILEEN (ON PHONE)

ADN only did one spot news story and a short folo on Gloria Nagiac? STANLEY We had to move on.

INT. EILEEN'S HOUSE - SAME/INT. STANLEY’S HOUSE Her computer and work is spread out on the table next to an empty pizza box. It’s very bright in her house as compared to Stanley’s because her shades aren’t drawn. EILEEN

And there’s no public information or press releases about the case on the Barrow police site. STANLEY Unfortunately, not surprising. EILEEN No wonder it keeps happening. Police report tell us anything? STANLEY Can’t get it. They’re stonewalling. EILEEN Three months later? That’s stupid. What’d the coroner say? STANLEY Inconclusive. Body was too decomposed. Hey Eileen, it’s 10:30. Can we pick this up tomorrow? EILEEN (Checking her watch) It is? Jesus. It’s bright as day.

Stanley’s Wife groans. She clocks it. EILEEN (CONT'D)

21.

STANLEY Welcome to Alaska. I’ll see at the editors meeting 9:30 am. Night. Stanley hangs up. Eileen sits down and types.

C/U: GOOGLE SEARCH: ANCHORAGE DAILY NEWS, BUILDING. Images of the ADN BUILDING pop up. It’s an impressive structure with a huge glass lobby. Eileen nods, surprised. Not bad.

INT. EILEEN’S HOUSE, BEDROOM - NIGHT Eileen lies in her bed, wide awake, staring at the WINDOW SHADE. Even with it down, the room is bright. She checks the clock 11:38pm. She peeks outside, yep, bright as day. She sighs, gets up with a groan. INT. EILEEN'S HOUSE - KITCHEN Eileen stomps into the bright as day kitchen and snatches the SLEEP MASK off the counter. She stomps back to the bedroom. INT. EILEEN’S BEDROOM - MORNING Eileen is sound asleep, mask on. KNOCKING. She doesn’t move. MORE KNOCKING. She jolts awake. Checks her phone. EILEEN Crap! INT./EXT. EILEEN’S HOUSE, FRONT DOOR Eileen opens the door, MASK ON HER HEAD, to find an eager Gabriel holding a newspaper and coffee. GABRIEL Morning... oh you used the mask! EILEEN Give me 15 minutes. She shuts the door, opens it again, takes the coffee. Slam! INT. CAR - LATER Gabriel is driving. Eileen is buried in the ADN paper. GABRIEL Here we are. Anchorage Daily News.

22.

Eileen lowers her paper to see a STRIP MALL. EILEEN

This isn’t it. Where’s the big glass lobby with white pillars? GABRIEL Oh. That was the old building. The paper moved three years ago. (whispering) Downsizing.

INT. LOBBY, ADN - LATER Gabriel leads Eileen through the tiny lobby. One FEMALE RECEPTIONIST (40’s) who never looks up. Never. GABRIEL (Without stopping) Hi Janice. This is Eileen Fitzgerald. She’s starting today, I have a key card for her. (Turning to Eileen) I think she might be deaf. Gabriel keys the metal door and leads Eileen into... INT. ADN NEWSROOM - SAME So it’s not the Vanguard. But it still looks like a newsroom. Just a much smaller, emptier, oddly shaped version of one. There are about 15 people scattered about working at their desks. No one really takes notice of Eileen. GABRIEL

Your desk is right over here if you wanna drop your coat. I left you some new pads and pens. EILEEN (She drops her coat) Why is it so quiet? GABRIEL Is it? EILEEN Yeah. Extremely. It’s depressing.

23.

GABRIEL Oh. Well that’s the 9:30 meeting in there. Looks like they started.

INT. BOARDROOM - LATER The meeting is in progress. SIX PEOPLE sitting around the small room. Eileen opens the door, eases in, apologetically. EILEEN Sorry I’m late. Hi. STANLEY Gang this is Eileen Fitzgerald. Eileen, our legion of doom. A few chuckles, nods. Eileen nods back, sits. STANLEY (CONT'D) Let’s do intros as we go around. Bob? You wanna continue? BOB Thank you Stanley. (Looking at Eileen) Bob Young. Editor at large. There’s an old school formality to Bob. He glances at his notes, muttering ALMOST to himself. BOB (CONT'D) So where was I before the interruption... Eileen raises an eyebrow-- so it’s gonna be like that. BOB (CONT'D)

We still don’t have many details on the armed stand off with police at the Muldoon apartment building. The suspect was male. Twenties. Caucasian. Completely nude. He claimed he was being unfairly evicted. He’s in police custody. Jieun Park is working on a folo. STANLEY Did you get an apartment number? BOB Anchorage PD would not provide it.

Eileen clocks this. Perks up.

24.

EILEEN If the cops entered the apartment of a private citizen, they should provide the unit number. BOB They feel differently. EILEEN What about the CAD notes? BOB We don’t have access to them.

Eileen reacts.

EILEEN To CAD notes? Those are public record. They’re hiding something. BOB You don’t know that. EILEEN Wanna bet? STANLEY Eileen, we’ve had a deteriorating relationship with Anchorage PD. They’re no longer prioritizing media requests. EILEEN So sic legal on them. STANLEY Our legal is not as effective with the PD as we like him to be. EILEEN He’s a wimp or just no good?

Now it’s just getting awkward. Apparently, Eileen left her manners back in... well she never really had manners. BOB

Charlie’s a very nice guy. He’s very well respected in this town. EILEEN Good for Charlie but you don’t need a nice guy. You need a jerk who gets records.

25.

BOB

That’s rude.

EILEEN Damn right it’s rude. Rude gets the job done. It’s also right. STANLEY Eileen. We’ll talk about this offline. OK? (Eileen start to speak) OK? Eileen sits back in her chair raising her hands in mock innocence. Day one is off with a bang. EXT. BOARDROOM - LATER Meeting over. Eileen beelines for her desk, takes out her phone, finds a name and dials. EILEEN (INTO PHONE) Hey, Pete. Eileen Fitzgerald. Yeah, it has been a minute. Good. I’m... Eileen pulls back her chair to sit--A SEVEN YEAR OLD BOY pops out from under her desk. She jumps. EILEEN (CONT'D) Ah! The KID blows past her, never looking up from his iPad. She watches the Kid disappear under another desk. EILEEN (CONT'D)

Sorry about that, I saw a... bug. Hey look, I need some help getting hold of some police records. In Anchorage. Alaska. (Quietly) No, I’m not really back in the game, just helping a friend at the Daily News here but if anyone asks for a name use... (Checks over her shoulder)

Bob Young. Editor-at-large. Yeah. I gotta jump into a meeting, can I email you the details? Thanks Pete. She hangs up, checks under her seat again. WTF? FEMALE VOICE (O.S.) Eileen?

26.

She turns to see a FEMALE REPORTER (37.) CLAIRE (Very direct)

Claire Muncy. I’m a reporter here. Welcome. We’re lucky to have you.

Claire is VERY direct. Not a drop of bullshit or wasted energy in her. She’s a senior reporter at the paper. EILEEN Thanks. I read your piece on the white nationalist group this morning. It was good. Disturbing. CLAIRE Yeah, very disturbing. But thanks I gotta get to the courthouse for his hearing actually. EILEEN You cover courts too? CLAIRE We all cover everything. Small newsroom. EILEEN Got it. Hey, a kid was just under my desk. CLAIRE Yeah, Zachary. He’s Austins’s son. She points to AUSTIN (30’s, white) who has a phone under his ear. He waves. AUSTIN He doesn’t bite. Promise. Welcome. Austin Greene. Editor. Photographer. GA reporter. Eileen nods, waves. EILEEN So everybody really does everything. CLAIRE Yeah. It’s kind of the Alaskan way. EILEEN Meaning?

27.

CLAIRE There’s a frontier mentality here. There aren’t a lot of us so people rely on each other. They have to. It’s a tough place to go it alone. If you have any questions just ask. EILEEN Great. You wanna grab a drink after work so I can pick your brain. CLAIRE I don’t usually have free nights. Three kids. I gotta be home by six. EILEEN Full plate. CLAIRE If you don’t mind the commotion you can come over for dinner one night. EILEEN (Never) Yeah. Sure. CLAIRE

Except tomorrow. I gotta speak at career night at my kid’s school. EILEEN Lucky you. Claire smiles, moves on. Eileen’s desk phone rings. EILEEN (INTO PHONE)(CONT'D) Eileen Fitzgerald. Where are you? She looks around. Spots Stanley in his office, waving. EILEEN (CONT'D) Got you. Be right over. She hangs up, grabs a pad and pen off her desk and turns to go, almost colliding with JIEUN PARK (Korean, 26.) JIEUN Oh. I’m sorry. EILEEN (CONT'D) Woah. Sorry. I didn’t see you there... right directly behind me. JIEUN (CONT'D) (Quietly) I wanted to introduce myself also.

28.

EILEEN

(She waits) Now? Or later because... JIEUN Now. Jieun Park. I’m a reporter. EILEEN Are you on that police stand off... JIEUN In Muldoon. Yes. EILEEN Anything new on that? JIEUN No. Not right now. Why? EILEEN

Because there’s more to that story than a naked guy waving a gun. I’ll get the CAD notes so we can figure out what apartment he lived in. Give me a day. JIEUN OK. Thank you. Bye. Jieun suppresses a smile, goes. Eileen’s phone rings again.. EILEEN (INTO PHONE) I’m coming. I’m coming. MALE VOICE (ON PHONE) Is this Eileen Fitzgerald? Eileen freezes. It’s not Stanley. She’s on guard. EILEEN Who’s calling? MALE VOICE Formerly of the Vangaurd? EILEEN Who is this? MALE VOICE A concerned citizen. EILEEN What’s your concern? Citizen.

29.

MALE VOICE

You.

EILEEN So stop being a creep and introduce yourself. MALE VOICE Soon enough. Welcome to Alaska, Ms. Fitzgerald.

Click. Eileen hangs up, deeply unsettled.

END OF ACT 2

ACT THREE

INT. STANLEY’S OFFICE - LATER Eileen walks in, plops down. New chair but a familiar seat. EILEEN You put out a press release on me? STANLEY No. Why? You want one? EILEEN Nope. Just checking. Oh. I found a kid under my desk. STANLEY We need to be flexible with our reporters’ ‘situations’. EILEEN At least you gotta lot of women on staff. I like that. STANLEY Majority of women actually. EILEEN But still men at the top. STANLEY Speaking of, Bob... EILEEN Editor-at-Large Bob? He’s gotta go.

30.

STANLEY

No he doesn’t.

EILEEN Well keep him away from me. STANLEY I think he feels likewise. EILEEN I need to get up to Barrow. Poke around. Can I go tomorrow? STANLEY Yeah. I’m going to send you up with someone to help... EILEEN I don’t need help. STANLEY The North Slope is like nowhere you’ve ever been, trust me. EILEEN I was in Afghanistan for two years, Stanley. I can deal.

KNOCK. ROSALIND ‘ROZ’ FRIENDLY (28, Yupik) is at the door. Roz is the full package of brains, confidence, and drive. She was born for this job and she knows it. She’s a rocket. ROZ Hey. You wanted to see me? STANLEY Yeah. Come on in, Roz. Meet Eileen Fitzgerald. ROZ Oh. Didn’t see you. (Shakes her hand) Rosalind Friendly. Welcome. They shake hands. STANLEY Roz, I want you to travel with Eileen up to Barrow. ROZ Utqiagvik.

31.

STANLEY Yeah. Sorry. Utqiagvik. EILEEN Not Barrow. ROZ That’s the colonial name. It was renamed six years ago. (To Stanley) I can’t go. I’m deep in my story. STANLEY It’s two days. I need you to go. ROZ So, what? Big foot here drops in and we have to drop everything. EILEEN That’s not friendly, Ms. Friendly. ROZ What’s the story? STANLEY The death of Gloria Nagiac. ROZ You mean murder. EILEEN You have proof?

Roz glares at Eileen.

ROZ I have my gut. And I know Alaska. STANLEY Your gut’s not good enough. We need facts. We need to prove it wasn’t an accident or suicide. If she was murdered, we need hard evidence. And we report on that. ROZ OK. And say we do that. So what? EILEEN “So what”? ROZ I’m not talking to you.

32.

EILEEN It’s my story... ROZ

And you’ve been here for five minutes. Good luck in Barrow . EILEEN (To Stanley) Really? ROZ

EILEEN (CONT'D)

Stanley, even if we report on how she was murdered.

Died.

ROZ (CONT'D) Died. The cops aren’t gonna do crap. They never do. STANLEY Then we report on that. This stops Roz cold. She’s intrigued. Eileen clocks it. ROZ You mean that? STANLEY There’s one big one. She’s a native woman. And the system is racist. STANLEY You may be right. And that’s why I want to report on her death. Roz is VERY intrigued now. She pivots, points to Eileen. ROZ I’m in but why do we need her? She’s a white woman from New York. It’s not her story to tell. EILEEN Team player. STANLEY I do. I want answers. There’s no reason that there are no answers. ROZ

Yes, Roz, she’s white and from New York. She also has twenty-five years of investigative experience.

33.

ROZ But she doesn’t know crap about Alaska or Alaska natives. This whole white savior thing is stale. EILEEN

STANLEY That’s why you’re gonna help her. So do you need a another day to tie things up or can you go tomorrow?

Here we go.

Roz shakes her head, realizes it’s a done deal. ROZ Tomorrow. Get it done. Can I go? STANLY Thank you, Roz. And she’s gone. STANLEY Remind you of someone? EILEEN Not me. She’s a Gen whatever. They

play tough until their little feelings get hurt and they... STANLEY Get you canceled? EILEEN Yeah. That. For being racist which is bullshit. STANLEY It happened. To you. And you have to deal with it. EILEEN You trying to fix me, Stanley. STANLEY No. But what you went through, what you’re going through, is traumatic. EILEEN But I’m here and I’m ready to work. STANLEY Eileen, Alaska is not a place you come to get unbroken. It can be... hard here.

(MORE)

34.

STANLEY (CONT'D)

Too much light in the summer and too much dark the rest of the year. It’s easy to feel isolated. Alone. EILEEN Good to know. I gotta get to work. Eileen has a very hard shell. Stanley nods, she gets up leaves. He watches, concerned. INT. NEWSROOM - LATER Eileen is on her computer reading the Facebook page of Gloria Nagiac. Pictures of Gloria in her prime. She jots names from posts on a list marked; PEOPLE OF INTEREST. One series of posts from OTIS CRENSHAW catches her eye. They range from emotional to angry. The final post from him reads; “Just kill yourself like you’ve been threatening to do.” EILEEN You may have got your wish, Otis. She does a NEXUS LEXUS search on the name Otis Crenshaw. There are a bunch of hits on police trouble and arrests. EILEEN (CONT'D) No stranger to trouble. That earns you a top spot on my VIP list. LOUD REPORTER (V.O.) DAMNIT! DAMNIT! Eileen turns to see a very tall BLACK REPORTER bounding across the newsroom on his cellphone. LOUD REPORTER Well that really sucks, Karl! That’s my story! So figure it out! He hangs up, immediately calm. LOUD REPORTER(CONT'D) Hey. Who are you? EILEEN Eileen Fitzgerald. LOUD REPORTER Oh. From New York. Right. Dwayne Morris. Breaking news.

35.

EILEEN That’s it. Aren’t you supposed to do a little bit of everything here? DWAYNE I told them if they ask me to do anything else, I’m out. EILEEN You must be good. DWAYNE I am good. And I’m the only Black reporter at the paper so they don’t want to lose me. It’s a Win Win. (Then) You’ve had a rough year. EILEEN I did. DWAYNE So why here? EILEEN

Only place that offered me a job. And from what I can tell this place needs all the help it can get. DWAYNE Win Win. (His phone rings) Gotta take this. (Into his phone.) Karl? Tell me good things, Karl. He starts off, passing Austin, they fist bump. EILEEN (Spacing his name) Hey...uh... AUSTIN Austin.

*

EILEEN (CONT'D) Austin. Sorry. How do I check criminal cases filed in state? AUSTIN Courtview. I can show you. (He takes Eileen’s mouse) Should be right here. EILEEN Where’s Zachary the desk pirate?

36.

AUSTIN His mom got him. So just add the name here and press search. Eileen does exactly that. Austin reads over her shoulder. AUSTIN (CONT'D)

Yeah, so he was charged multiple times, including three felonies, two of those sexual assault. But never convicted. Bad dude. EILEEN And, apparently, very slippery.

Austin leans in, starts typing again. AUSTIN

Here. Let’s check Vinelink to see if he’s currently incarcerated. EILEEN (Sniffing) Were you just smoking pot? AUSTIN No. Just picked some up from the dispensary across the street. It’s a good one. So he’s not in custody or in jail. EILEEN Thanks Austin. AUSTIN You got it. Good luck.

He walks off, Eileen looks back at her computer. She clicks Otis’s page. There’s a photo of Otis Crenshaw (20’s, Alaska Native.) He looks like any kid trying to look tough.

INT. JIEUN PARKS APARTMENT - NIGHT Jieun is working on her couch in a tiny, sparely furnished apartment. She’s eating a burrito when her phone rings. JIEUN (INTO PHONE) Hello? EILEEN Hey. It’s Eileen. Jieun sits up, surprised.

37.

JIEUN (INTO PHONE)

EILEEN (CONT'D) I just heard from my guy in NY. We got the CAD notes. Go to the PD in the am, see the PIO. Don’t take no.

Oh. Hi Eileen...

JIEUN (INTO PHONE)(CONT'D)

Yeah. OK. Thanks so much for...

Click. That’s it.

INT. PUB - LATER Eileen, sets down her phone, perched at the end of the bar, working. An empty plate in front of her. She sips her drink. The Bartender lifts her empty plate. BARTENDER Where you from? EILEEN How’d you know I’m not from here? BARTENDER Clothes. Hair. Demeanor. Computer. EILEEN (Smiling) Good eye. New York. I’m Eileen. BARTENDER Karla. What brings you to Anchorage, Eileen from New York? EILEEN Work. I’m a reporter. KARLA Cool. Well sit here long enough and you’ll hear plenty of stories. EILEEN Are you a local? KARLA Nope. From Houston. Came up for a job. Lost the job. Now here. EILEEN What was the lost job?

38.

KARLA Accountant at an oil company. I’m a sucker for a spread sheet. MALE VOICE (O.S.) Excuse me, Karla. They turn to see a SCRUFFY DUDE standing at the bar. SCRUFFY DUDE

I sure could use a Jack and soda and if I’m not being too bold... (nodding to Eileen) I’d like to buy a drink for our visiting friend here for interrupting. EILEEN Do I really stand out that much? KARLA

SCRUFFY GUY

Yes.

Yep.

EILEEN

Good to know.

KARLA One sec, Jamie. She turns to Eileen, lowers her voice. Serious. KARLA (CONT'D)

Listen up, Eileen from New York. You gotta be careful in Alaska. Lotta weirdo’s, lotta violence toward women. A lot. Jamie’s cool, I know his friends. But keep your guard up, you hear? EILEEN I do.

INT. BAR - LATER Eileen and JAMIE are deep in conversation. Jamie is funny and a bit odd but it’s clear he’s intelligent. JAMIE I ended up staying in that village for about a year. EILEEN Just fishing.

39.

JAMIE And drinking. And... living. EILEEN Why’d you move to Alaska, Jamie? JAMIE

I came to Alaska because I needed to disappear... from it all. In fact, it seems to me that most people end up here for one of two reasons. To disappear or to reinvent themselves. How about you? Eileen considers the question, answers honestly. EILEEN

Well... I’ve already disappeared once and I hated it. So I guess it’s door number two. JAMIE

Reinvention. Big one. And if Alaska isn’t a match, you gotta plan B? Eileen thinks about it. The conversation just got very real. EILEEN No. I don’t. JAMIE Does that concern you? Eileen eyeballs him, not one to beat around the bush. EILEEN It scares the hell out of me. Jamie nods, sits with the intensity of her crisis. Then... JAMIE (Raising his glass) Well, Ms. Fitzgerald, here is to reinventing yourself. Eileen almost smiles. They clink glasses. INT. EILEEN’S HOUSE, BEDROOM - MORNING Knocking at the door. Eileen’s eyes pop open. Hungover. EILEEN Ouch.

40.

She grabs her phone, looks at it. She sits up, NAKED JAMIE sleeping next to her. She sighs. Yep. Day two, that happened.

INT. EILEEN’S HOUSE - FRONT DOOR Eileen opens the door. Gabriel is waiting with a coffee. EILEEN I need 15. She takes the coffee. Slam. INT. EILEEN’S HOUSE - 14 MINUTES LATER Eileen’s dressed. She places the coffee next to Jamie. EILEEN Sorry, I have a flight to catch. JAMIE Oh yeah. You gonna be OK? EILEEN What do mean? JAMIE You know, your last flight. He makes a hand gesture of “falling over”. EILEEN

Oh. That. I’m fine. Enjoy your coffee and let yourself out. Bye.

And she’s gone.

JAMIE (Calling after) And leave my number.

END OF ACT 3

ACT FOUR

INT. 737 AIRPLANE - LATER Eileen is looking over her notes. Roz is on her computer. A bump. Eileen grips her chair. Roz clocks it. ROZ You don’t like flying?

41.

EILEEN My last flight was a little... nutty. ROZ Well get used to it. You have to fly everywhere in Alaska. It’s huge and the road system sucks. EILEEN We need a rental car? ROZ Booked. It’s next to the airport. EILEEN You know this place well? ROZ I was up here a few years ago on a bootlegging story. Plus I grew up in a village. Lot of similarities. EILEEN Bootlegging story? ROZ

Some villages are dry, it’s like prohibition, so the locals get creative. We could maybe use it as a cover story if anyone asks what we’re doing. Might be better if folks, especially the cops, don’t know why we’re here. EILEEN Makes sense. Eileen sets out a photocopy of a map of Utqiagvik. EILEEN (CONT'D)

So if this is the village and they found her body out here. Could she have walked? ROZ Possible, yeah. But why? That’s three miles in the cold and dark. EILEEN She was upset or drunk or high. ROZ Because she’s native?

42.

EILEEN Because she was eighteens and struggling. And last seen at a house party. She hands some PRINTOUTS to Roz who takes them and reads. EILEEN (CONT'D) night, she walks out there, she gets lost or decides to give up. Roz looks over the documents. Eileen has a case. ROZ She was in and out of rehab. She had a record. So she’s having a bad

Maybe. You make a mistake out there, especially that time of year, you’re done. But if I’m being honest, I feel like you’re doing what they all do. Start by blaming the victim. EILEEN And by ‘they’ you mean... ROZ White people. She drank, smoked pot. So she deserved what she got. EILEEN I’m not blaming her but the police ruled out foul play... ROZ Of course they did. EILEEN And you said yourself she could have walked out there. It tracks. ROZ It does. But if she was white, we’d be assuming she was murdered. EILEEN Not me. ROZ You sure about that? (Eileen hesitates) Look, the racism and the violence visited on Indigenous people is insane.

(MORE)

43.

ROZ (CONT'D)

And it’s been going for centuries. You need to acknowledge that. EILEEN I do. But we can’t ignore the facts in this particular case. And right now, as messed up as the system might be, the facts do not point to foul play in Gloria’s death. ROZ Facts. On the North Slope. You really are from the outside.

Roz returns to her work. Eileen process this, looks out the window. And there it is... UTQIA Ġ VIK. A spit of town perched on what appears to be the edge of the world.

INT. POLICE DEPARTMENT - DAY Jieun steps up to the window. A grumpy, white PIO awaits. JIEUN Hi. Jieun Park. Anchorage Daily News. I’m here for the CAD notes on this case. She slides the paper across the desk. The PIO takes it, barely looks at her. He reads the case # and types. PIO Those are not available to press. JIEUN Uh. I think they are actually. Can you double check. Please. He sighs. But he does. And doesn’t like what he reads. PIO Oh. This is the thing with that lawyer from New York? Jieun is a bit in the dark here. She just shrugs. JIEUN I was just sent to pick it up. He gives her the stink eye, walks away.

44.

INT. ADN NEWSROOM - LATER Jieun hurries through the newsroom, sits at her desk. JIEUN

Hey Claire. Where’s the best place to track down the owner of private property again. CLAIRE The planning department website. It’s ridiculously chaotic, but if you can manage it, you’ll find it. JIEUN Right. Thanks.

Jieun digs in.

INT. UTQIAGVIK AIRPORT TERMINAL - LATER A giant QUONSET HUT, more way station than airport. Roz and Eileen knife through throngs of mostly INDIGENOUS people. ROZ (Sotto to Eileen) Assistant District Attorney in red coat. Brian Sullivan. He would have been talking to detectives about filing charges in Gloria’s case. EILEEN Let’s find out why he didn’t. They approach the ADA who is chatting up his YOUNG ASSISTANT. ROZ Hi Brian. Roz Friendly. ADN. BRIAN Yes, of course. Hi Roz. ROZ This is Eileen Fitzgerald. She’s here with me reporting on the bootlegging crackdown by Barrow PD. BRIAN Nice to meet you Eileen. I will say the locals have been very supportive of those efforts. Sullivan is slick. Roz hides her disdain.

45.

EILEEN I’d love to hear more. Maybe we could sit down and discuss? BRIAN Of course. In the meantime there’s a borough hall meeting here tomorrow night and the police chief will be there discussing it. EILEEN We’ll be there.

She pulls out her phone, makes her play. EILEEN (CONT'D) Can I get your cell, Brian? Sullivan’s caught off guard. He recovers, pulls out a CARD. BRIAN Oh. And Brian... did the police refer Gloria Nagiac’s death to the DA’s office to prosecute? Sullivan looks shocked, but then covers with a smile. BRIAN Open investigation. Sorry. He leaves. They watch him go. ROZ Here’s my card. It has my office number which is much more reliable. EILEEN

He’s hiding. So who dropped the ball? The cops or the DA’s office? EILEEN Good question. And put that borough hall meeting on our dance card.

INT. RENTAL CAR - LATER The village is comprised of small, ramshackle houses connected by dirt roads. Broken down trucks and detritus litter the landscape. And beyond the houses, nothing but water, ice and earth. EILEEN It’s an intense place. So isolated.

46.

ROZ It’s also beautiful. And the land is bountiful. But if you don’t know it, it can be dangerous. The earth

swallows people up. You make a mistake, you pay with your life. Roz pulls into the driveway of a SMALL WOODEN BUILDING. EILEEN This the courthouse? ROZ Tribal Council. We can go to the courthouse after. EILEEN Why? ROZ It shows respect and some humility. And I already set the meeting. EILEEN (Pissed) Next time check with me first. INT. TRIBAL COUNCIL OFFICE - DAY A simple room with some NATIVE ART on the walls. Eileen and Roz sit with FOUR NATIVE WOMEN (30-60.) One NATIVE MAN (35.) ROZ Thank you for agreeing to sit with us. I am here to assist my

colleague, Eileen Fitzgerald in reporting on a story that is of interest to our paper. 40 YR OLD WOMAN (To Eileen) What is the story about? EILEEN Bootlegging. We are taking a look

at the police crackdown on bootlegging in Utqia ġ vik. The table just sits, silent. Blank faces. Roz jumps in. ROZ But that is not the story that we are here for today.

47.

Eileen shoots her a look. WTF? ROZ (CONT'D)

We are looking into the death of Gloria Nagiac. Our paper wants to find out what exactly happened. Looks exchanged. Eileen clocks the temperature change. 35 YR OLD MAN Have you spoken with, Sylvie, her mother? ROZ We are meeting with her today. 35 YR OLD MAN You should talk to her first. EILEEN Can I ask, do you know Otis Crenshaw? A friend of Gloria’s. 40 YR OLD WOMN Of course. Otis and Gloria dated. Otis was... troubled. EILEEN Was? 40 YR OLD WOMN He died last month. Hunting accident. Woah. Eileen blinks. Coincidence? Roz clocks this. EILEEN You said they dated. How long? A few furtive glances, they definitely know something. 60 YR OLD WOMAN Where are you from Ms. Fitzgerald? EILEEN New York. City. Saying it out loud reinforces the obvious. NYC is far away. 60 YR OLD WOMAN

And why did you initially tell us your story was about bootlegging?

Eileen gauges the room, makes a call...

Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60

Made with FlippingBook flipbook maker